Bath-tub cover.



Patented NOV. 22, 14910.

.d. .m. .n.

A. MESSENGER.

BATH TUB COVER. APPLICATION FILED MAY 18, 1909.

M m J n n n W n WzTness es:

ADELAIDE MESSENGER, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF T0 MARY C. SMITH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BATH-TUB covEE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 22, 1910.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ADELAIDE MESSENGER, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Bath-Tub Covers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in bath tub covers.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a device of its kind by the use of which a steam, vapor or sweat bath can be easily taken or administered in a bath tub.

Among further objects of my invention is to provide a cover which can easily be kept clean and sanitary, is capable of being folded into a small and compact parcel, and is inexpensive to manufacture.

I-Ieretofore it has been customary to employ a flexible cover made of rubber or canvas. This construction is objectionable because, rubber or canvas tends to sag and drop in the water in the bath tub, does not close the top of the tub tight, and the cover is not easily dried thus making the use of flexible material undesirable.

Another objection to the use of a flexible cover is that a person taking a bath tends to slip down in a tub and there is no way provided by which the body can be held inclined back and substantially stationary. My invention provides means for overcoming this and the other objections above noted.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bath tub showing my improved cover a portion of the tub being broken away to more fully illustrate a detail of my invention; Fig. 2 is a plan of my invention shown in place upon a bath tub a portion of which is broken away for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which the cover is held laterally upon the tub, Fig. 3 is another plan showing the sections of the cover separable and not provided with hinges as illustrated in Fig. 2.

My invention comprises a rigid cover made of thin metal or other suitable material the outer edge of which is adapted to rest upon and conform in outline with the rim 2 of a bath tub D. The cover is preferably made in a number of sections, three being illustrated in the drawing as indicated by the letters A, B and 0. Any number of sections may be provided as desired. The

section A, I term the body, the section B the foot piece and the section C the head piece. The edge of each section is turned under all around as illustrated by dotted lines at 9 for the purpose of forming a smooth rounded edge and reinforcing the strength of each section. The meeting edges of each pair of adjoining sections are secured together by hinges 3 so that the foot and head pieces can be swung over on top of the body A. Across the body and secured to its lower surface by means of rivets 4 are transverse T rails 5 and 6 which also reinforce the strength of the body A. The ends of these reinforcin members slip down between the side walls of the bath tub D and serve to hold the cover laterally in position and thus assist in closing the top of the tub. The head piece C is formed with a neck opening E in its outer extremity so that the body of the person taking a bath can be held in backwardly inclining position covered in the bath tub while the head projects through said neck opening at or near the slanting end 8 of the tub. The transverse reinforcing member 5 on the lower surface of the body A, can be grasped by the hands of the person in the tub and the body thus steadied and prevented from slipping down into the tub. The cover also is maintained in position on the rim of the tub by holding the member 5.

In the construction illustrated in Fig. 3 the sections A, B and C are shown separated, the hinges being omitted.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described the principles of operation of my invention together with apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof but I desire to have it understood that the construction shown is only illustrative and that the invention can be carried out by other means and applied to uses other than those above set forth within the scope of the following claim.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is A bath tub cover, comprising, three cover plates, one a body section, another a foot section and the remainder a head section, said sections lying in a horizontal plane, the outer edges thereof coinciding substantially with and resting upon the rim of the tub, said head section having its outer edge formed with a neck opening and said body section being provided with a reinforcing transverse strlp on its lower surface, the

ends of said strip passing between the inner walls of said bath tub and serving to prevent lateral displacement of said body section and said head and foot sections, said head and foot sections being hinged to said body section and adapted to fold over the same.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification in the presence 1c of two subscribing witnesses.

ADELAIDE MESSENGER.

\Vitnesses H. L. FIscHER, F. G. BRADBURY. 

